The House of Lyall by Doris Davidson Read Free Book Online

him was that they obviously liked talking with her and lingered on while he wished them at the other end of the earth. But he could not tell her so. She clearly didn’t feel the same way about him as he did about her.
    Another summer coming to an end, the weather turned progressively colder. Sunshine gave way to winds and showers, then to mists and rain and then to sleet and snow … accompanied by gales. The young people did not forego their afternoon walks unless the weather was too bad, but come Marianne’s third November in Aberdeen, they were more often inside than out. This put a temporary end to the lessons, but Marianne surprised the sisters by her newly acquired ability to enter into discussions on current affairs. As Miss Edith observed, ‘Andrew has worked wonders. Except when she is under stress, Marianne has practically lost her country accent, and she can carry herself quite gracefully. And she has grown since she came here; she is almost as tall as he is now.’
    â€˜I think they’re a perfect couple,’ Miss Esther beamed, ‘just made for each other.’
    â€˜No, no,’ cautioned Miss Emily. ‘I think that our Maid Marianne is looking for someone with better prospects than Andrew.’
    Very much out of character, Miss Edith gave a long sigh. ‘Can’t you see that he already loves her? I am afraid she will break his heart, not deliberately, but he will be hurt, nevertheless.’
    Sighing too, Miss Esther murmured hopefully, ‘She is young yet. By the time she is old enough for marriage …’ The return of the young people at that moment put an end to their conjecturing.
    It soon became noticeable, to Marianne herself as well as to her benefactresses, that her relationship with Andrew had changed; although they were still just friends, a new element had crept in of his wanting to touch her, to brush hands or shoulders, to sit closer to her on the sofa, which made Miss Esther nod happily.
    Marianne herself did not know how she felt about it. While she liked the way that she sometimes caught Andrew looking at her, his eyes soft with admiration … or more? … it made her uneasy. She had now made the acquaintance of several of the students who were at Marischal College with him, and she was hoping that one of them would ask her out so that she could make some comparisons. She did wonder how Andrew would take it, but surely he’d want her to enjoy herself? A few hours of innocent pleasure – what would be wrong with that?
    Andrew sprung his surprise as soon as he arrived on the first Sunday in December. ‘There’s a Hogmanay Ball being laid on for the Law Faculty,’ he announced, his eyes going round the four smiling faces. ‘I want to go, but … I need a partner.’
    â€˜Take Marianne,’ beamed Miss Esther. ‘She won’t have to worry about a ballgown, because there’s plenty of time for me to –’
    â€˜I can’t let you make one for me!’ the girl gasped, scarlet-faced.
    Miss Edith, the decision-maker, stepped in. ‘That is not the point in question, Marianne. Do you really want to go, or do you feel that you had better go for the sake of appearance, since most of Andrew’s friends will have seen him out walking with you?’
    â€˜I want to go,’ Marianne cried, ‘but it’ll be an awful lot of work for you and such an expense …’
    Miss Esther stood up. ‘I was not meaning to make a dress. I am sure one of the old gowns in the trunk in our cellar would fit without too much alteration. Emily, will you come down with me to hold the candle while I look?’
    After her sisters left the room, Miss Edith got to her feet. ‘I may as well go with them. I would quite like to see our gowns again. Mamma had them made for our one and only ball, but …’ She shrugged this off as though she did not regret it, but her wry smile and rather sad